Ludhiana's industrial sector awaits launch of Halwara Airport

Ludhiana: With work on the under-construction Halwara Airport nearing completion, industry in Ludhiana is anxiously waiting for start of operations. The Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertaking (CICU) said that they submitted a proposal to Air India officials during their visit to Ludhiana last August, saying that the industry would buy 50% of the tickets for the flight for three months. The association said that this would assure the airline operator that the flight from Halwara airport would be successful.
CICU president Upkar Singh Ahuja said that during the meeting with the Air India team on Aug 29 last year, they proposed that association members would buy 50% of the tickets for the flight. He added that they assured the team that the flight would be successful. Ahuja added that they have around 30,000 members and 36 affiliated associations, including the Knitwear Club, United Cycle Parts and Manufacturers Association, Auto Parts, and Machine Tools Association. Besides industry members, he said that senior staff members of various units could also take the flight to save time.
"There are around 4,000 taxis that go to IGI (Indira Gandhi Airport) in Delhi to drop businessmen and NRIs. It takes a person around seven hours to travel to Delhi by road, whereas trains are overcrowded, making travel challenging. So, if Halwara Airport is started, it would not only give a boost to the industry and facilitate NRIs as well as students, but would also increase the chances of setting up the IT industry in Ludhiana," said the CICU president. He added that since big planes could not operate from Sahnewal Airport, the industry was anxiously waiting for the start of operations at Halwara Airport.
Time is of the essence: UCPMA
UCPMA president Harsimerjit Singh Lucky said that the government had delayed the project even though everything had been cleared by the IAF and ministries concerned. He requested the government to start operations at the airport at the earliest.
"As of now, it takes a shorter time to reach Thailand from Delhi than to reach Ludhiana from Delhi. We have to waste three days if we go for a meeting to other cities of the country as Ludhiana does not have proper air connectivity. It is not safe to travel to Delhi by road because of accidents, and even as our schedule is set two to three days in advance, it is not possible to get tickets by train," said the UCPMA president.
He added that since cycle parts from Ludhiana go to various parts of the world, a proper airport is needed.
"Once the airport starts, it shouldn't be restricted to flights to Delhi but also to other cities of the country and abroad, contributing to economic growth, safety, and ease of doing business. It will also help save time and fuel if we start such modes of travel," he said.
Proper connectivity is a must: Steel inc
The steel industry of the city is also waiting for flight operations to start at the airport. Lokesh Jain, chairman, Ludhiana CII (Confederation of Indian Industry), who runs a steel manufacturing unit, said that the steel industry in the city has around 100 members. Jain, who is also general secretary of Ludhiana Steel Re-rollers Association, said that while holding meetings in various cities was a one-day task for their counterparts in other parts of the country, they took two days to do the same.
"There are people who fly on the same day, take meetings, come back the same day and work with ease. But for us, this is not possible. We lose work, time and money as we don't have such a facility. It has an adverse impact on the sector as customers don't come to Ludhiana and they don't even invite us because of the hassles involved," said Jain, who is also general secretary of Ludhiana Management Association.
"Everybody wants the airport to start, but we want adequate flights at least to various metros and a direct flight to Mumbai as it is a preferred flight route because of better flight times. Once the airport starts, a convention centre will open, after which four to five good hotels will come. As flights start coming, business conferences will be held and international customers and national buyers will come. It will lead to 360-degree growth," he said.
100% of civil work done: DC
Meanwhile, Ludhiana deputy commissioner (DC) Jitendra Jorwal said recently that 100% of civil works at the terminal site of the Halwara Airport had been completed. Presiding over a meeting with officials from PWD, public health, PSPCL, AAI, NHAI, drainage, etc at the site, the DC said that the speed of a few last-mile connectivity works on IAF campus had also been expedited. He added that the administration was constantly in touch with IAF to complete the works as soon as possible.
Jorwal said that construction of internal roads, public health services, campus lighting, terminal building, power sub-station, toilet block and parking was complete. He also spoke about flight operations and stated that Air India had agreed to commence flights to Halwara Airport once it was officially commissioned and received all necessary regulatory approvals.